Category: USFK

2nd ID Aviators Train with Navy Cargo Ship Off Coast of Korea

Here is some different training for pilots in 2ID:

A U.S. Navy vehicle cargo ship recently took a rare opportunity to train with Army helicopter crews off the southern coast of South Korea. Crews aboard UH-60M Black Hawks from the 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade qualified for deck landings aboard the USNS Dahl on March 7, 5 miles from Jinhae, Military Sealift Command, Far East said in a news release Monday.

“All flight deck operations are inherently dangerous but [deck landing qualifications] add the wild card of potentially novice crews who are not familiar with either the vessel or ship flight operations in general,” contracted mariner Capt. Deatra Thompson said in the release.

Stars and Stripes

You can read more at the link.

USFK Army Officer Featured in Netflix’s Season 2 of Physical: 100

Season 1 of Physical: 100 was pretty good and I will definitely be watching Season 2 when it comes out to see how this USKF Army officer does on the show:

An Army officer who lifts weights competitively will be featured in Netflix’s upcoming season of “Physical: 100,” a South Korean reality show in which 100 contestants compete in theatrical strength-based challenges.

Maj. Gibson Kim, of the 411th Contracting Support Brigade at Camp Humphreys, described himself as a “normal guy doing normal stuff with my day job and family,” during a March 4 interview with Stars and Stripes. Before his workday starts, however, this father of a 5-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter rises early for a round of weightlifting at his home gym. He started as a powerlifter at Rutgers University, where he earned a degree in economics in 2007. 

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

New Housing Tower Opens on Camp Walker

Some new housing has opened up for Soldiers stationed in the Daegu area of South Korea:

A new housing tower opened recently on Camp Walker, providing 90 additional units for households serving in Daegu, about 150 miles south of Seoul. The tower, which includes 60 three-bedroom, 26 four-bedroom and four five-bedroom apartments, is the last of four built for Walker residents, the Army said in a Feb. 29 news release.

The first tower broke ground in 2015; the last in 2020, U.S. Army Garrison Daegu spokesman Phil Molter said by email Tuesday. All four towers cost nearly $250 million to build. Walker is part of U.S. Army Garrison Daegu, which includes Camps George, Henry and Carroll. The base has a nine-hole golf course along with a commissary and post exchange.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

New Chapel Opens on Osan Airbase

This chapel replaces one that was over 50 years old:

A new chapel at this base south of Seoul “promises to enhance not only our strengths in worship, but our social connections, resilience and education efforts,” the wing commander said as its doors opened last week. The chapel, three years in construction, replaces its worn-out, demolished predecessor with a sanctuary that seats 306 and room for overflow.

“The previous chapel served Airmen for more than 50 years,” 51st Fighter Wing commander Col. William McKibban said in a statement Friday. “This one promises to deliver and serve Airmen for another 50 years, symbolizing an investment in Osan today for the Airmen of tomorrow, as well as over commitment to providing top-notch support to our service members and their families.”

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

3rd ACR Makes First Ever Deployment to South Korea

There is a new rotational brigade in South Korea:

The commander of 3rd Cavalry Regiment, Col. Jeffrey Barta, leads a formation during an authority transfer ceremony at Hanson Field House on Camp Casey, South Korea, Feb. 29, 2024. (Luis Garcia/Stars and Stripes)

A Texas-based cavalry regiment took over as the 2nd Infantry Division’s rotational force in South Korea during a ceremony roughly 15 miles from the Demilitarized Zone that divides the Korean Peninsula. The 3rd Cavalry Regiment, of Fort Cavazos, Texas, assumed its new role from 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team in front of about 350 troops gathered Thursday at Hanson Field House on Camp Casey. The Stryker team returns to Fort Carson, Colo., having completed its nine-month deployment.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Third U.S. F-16 In Less Than a Year Crashes in South Korea

Is this just some kind of strange streak of bad luck or are these crashes a symptom of something else?:

Amid an “in-flight emergency,” a U.S. F-16 fighter jet crashed in waters off South Korea’s west coast Wednesday morning, the U.S. Air Force said in a statement, adding that the pilot had “ejected safely” and was transported conscious to a medical facility for assessment. (…..)

This is the second time in less than two months that the U.S. Air Force has experienced incidents with its F-16s. In December, another F-16 fighter jet from the 8th Fighter Wing crashed into the Yellow Sea off South Korea’s southeastern coast, with the pilot also having ejected safely before the crash. At the time, Gaetke ordered a two-day pause on flights for investigation and recovery of the aircraft. It’s unclear if that investigation has concluded.

Last May, another F-16 pilot ejected safely before the aircraft crashed into farmland near Osan Air Base.

TIME

You can read more at the link as well as over at the Stars & Stripes.

8th Army to Offer $5,000 Bonus for Soldiers to Extend Tours in South Korea

Some US Army occupational specialities in South Korea are now going to have the option to take a $5,000 lump sum bonus to extend their tour on the peninsula:

Eighth Army troops in jobs on a critical shortage list may earn up to $5,000 for extending their tours in South Korea for another year. Career specialties on the critical list are eligible for that incentive; jobs deemed “understrength” could be offered $3,600, Eighth Army assistant chief of staff Col. R. Arron Lummer said by email Tuesday.

The critical list includes fire control specialists, rocket system crew members, Black Hawk helicopter mechanics, information technology specialists, satellite communication systems operators, military working dog handlers, preventive medicine specialists, wheeled vehicle mechanics, culinary specialists and AH-64E Apache helicopter pilots. Understrength jobs include combat engineers, joint fire support specialists, air defense enhanced early warning system operators, air traffic controllers, cavalry scouts and utilities equipment repairers. The bonuses are dispersed to eligible soldiers in a lump sum on the first day of their extended yearlong tour in South Korea.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but this is the first time I can remember a large lump sum bonus like this being to keep Soldiers in 8th Army.

Mural Brings Color to Wall Outside Osan Airbase

This was a good idea by an Air Force spouse:

Sometimes inspiration comes when you least expect it. For Air Force spouse Tenley Brady, it came during a walk in a park.

Brady, from Colorado Springs, Colo., was out with a friend after church for a walk at Osan Air Base, home of the U.S. 7th Air Force, in April when they passed a park near the base commissary. 

The park — a field of grass, a handful of trees, and two benches — is surrounded by a tall, white concrete wall topped by metal fencing.

The thought of bringing a splash of color to the park grew into an 8-month-long volunteer effort to brighten those surroundings. During an interview Dec. 8, Brady, her husband, Lt. Trey Brady, and former Osan community planner Erin Gray explained how the drab park wall became a canvas for a display of Korean culture.

The design shows Ginko trees, cherry blossoms, children playing, and a Buddhist temple atop a hill. It displays the highlights of South Korean culture.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

USFK Officially Hands Over Remaining Camp Market Land Back to South Korea

I did not know that Camp Market had not already been handed over, the facility has been closed for years:

The site of Camp Market, a former U.S. military base, in Bupyeong, about 25 kilometers west of Seoul, is seen in this photo taken Dec. 20, 2023. (Yonhap)

The site of Camp Market, a former U.S. military base, in Bupyeong, about 25 kilometers west of Seoul, is seen in this photo taken Dec. 20, 2023. (Yonhap)

The U.S. military in South Korea fully returned its former base, Camp Market, to the Asian country Wednesday, the defense ministry said, as part of a broad relocation scheme to consolidate its bases across South Korea.

The U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) handed over about 257,000 square meters of land in Camp Market near Seoul to South Korea, four years after returning some 216,000 square meters of land in the base in the first phase.

The agreement was made in a meeting of the South Korea-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement Joint Committee, which governs the legal status of the 28,500 American soldiers stationed in South Korea.

“As the rest of the site of Camp Market, which was used for a bread factory and warehouse, has been returned, the return process of a total of 473,000 square meters of land has been completed,” the defense ministry said in a joint statement with the ministries of foreign affairs, environment and land.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.